Fallout
by Senashenta
Summary: An accident in Haven unleashes a magic storm like no other before it. Now a sickness is spreading fast across the land, and Valdemar isn't the only country at risk. Out of their depth and some of the only living left in Haven, a handful of survivors must try to make it through the most horrifying plague in Velgarth's history.
1. The Dead Undead

**Disclaimer:** Valdemar and concepts belong to Mercedes Lackey; this story and original characters belong to their author.

**Notes:** As for the main characters! Kippen Wright and his Companion, Dysis; Rachel Hall and her Companion, Felicity; Thorn Tillman and his Companion, Sham, the Companion Senyo; the Companion Turii and Dwina Coldwater.

Kip and Dy are old characters of mine from an RP, whom I'm rather fond of and decided to revive. The rest are new characters created for this fic. :)

**Other Notes:** YES. YES, I WENT THERE.

**FALLOUT  
Prologue  
By Senashenta**

The problem was a simple one: the heartstone beneath Haven's streets just wasn't producing enough magical energy. Over the years since its construction the magic had been drained, slowly, through various means. The Companions in particular were being affected by the lack of power—it made them weaker, slower, more mortal.

Luckily—or perhaps unluckily—the solution was just as simple: create a new heartstone to supplement the current one.

And so Herald-Mage Rehn Walker found himself spending inordinate amounts of time hanging out in a series of large, damp caverns underneath the outskirts of Haven along with a local Mage named Dwina while his Companion, Turii, lounged around Companion's Field and made the occasional teasing comment about his general discomfort.

_:Aw, poor baby, stuck hanging out with an attractive, unattached woman all day every day.:_

_:Rii, you know that's not what my mind's on right now.:_

_:Then stop staring at her chest every time she looks away.:_

Rehn _sputtered_ at that, barely managing to choke the sound down in time. Across the cave, Dwina didn't seem to notice—just continued waving her hands in the air as she worked with the local key-lines, drawing and connecting them together.

_:I do _not_ stare at her chest!: _Rehn hissed in reply to Turii's jab.

The mare simply chuckled, the feeling of apples and sunshine flooding down the bond between them. _:No? Because she looks at your rear every time you turn around.:_

_:How would you know, you're not even _here!_:_

_:I just do.: _A smug tone. _:Companions are magic, after all.:_

Rehn snorted, rolling his eyes even as Turii faded into the back of his mind again and he turned back to Dwina. In reality, his Companion was right. He was most definitely attracted to Dwina. She was thin and pretty with light hair and dark eyes. They had been working together for months now, and Rehn found himself drawn to her more strongly as he learned more about her.

She wasn't just beautiful, she was also a good person, cheerful and friendly. She worked hard at anything she did, up to and including putting her all into forming the new heartstone.

"Turii teasing you again?"

"As usual." A burdened sigh and Rehn waved a hand dismissively, even as he was walking over to stand next to Dwina.

In front of them was a large boulder, taller than a person and probably weighing at least a ton. Natural heartstones were interspersed with crystals as they formed, but this one was only granite thus far. Part of what Rehn and Dwina had to do was form the crystal lacing themselves—a step that they were very close to achieving. But it would be tricky, as it had to happen at the same time as they pulled the surrounding keylines into position as well.

Their plan was for Dwina to control the keylines while Rehn created the crystals. It would be a huge strain on both of them, but they had worked out the plan weeks ago and both of them were certain they could manage it.

There was a long silence from Dwina then as her hands continued to weave in the air in front of her, reaching to grasp invisible strings and tug them toward herself—and then she dropped them to her sides, stretched her neck a little, and glanced back toward Rehn.

"I think I'm about as ready as I'll ever be." The Mage lifted her brows in a questioning motion. "How about you?"

Rehn considered for a moment, frowning in thought. Was he ready? He thought so. Just as Dwina had stretched her neck out, Rehn flexed his magical "muscles", straining against his own boundaries and dipping into Turii's mind slightly where there was an extra reserve of power set aside for him, as always. Turii's consciousness stirred curiously, then settled again once the Companion figured out what he was doing.

All in all, Rehn felt strong and confident in his abilities.

"Yeah." He replied finally. "Let's do this."

"Great!"

It was somehow both adorable and worrying how excited Dwina was about the project. Rehn didn't bother to say as much, though. Instead he just took his place beside her and took a deep breath before smiling sideways at the Mage standing next to him.

Lifting both hands palm-out, he closed his eyes, reaching out and feeling along the natural energy of the cave and the soon-to-be heartstone. Beside him, Dwina's hands began moving again, dancing in the air in front of her and grasping at the keylines, drawing them together and melding them into a new network.

Rehn took charge of forging the crystals within the granite, pulling the raw materials out and meshing them into the cracks and crevices of the stone in front of him. As he finished each crystal, Dwina tied the keylines to it before moving on to the next one.

But as much as things started off well, a candlemark into the work, Rehn found himself straining to draw in enough magical energy to continue working the crystals as he was—and his mind slipped slightly, sending a small shockwave outward.

"Rehn...?"

There was concern in Dwina's voice, but Rehn shook his head, brushing the Mage off a little even as he was reaching out toward Turii and that small vat of excess power that she always had for him. A curious feeling flooded down the bond between them—and then the mare seemed to understand, simply releasing the energy to allow him to tap it freely.

It didn't worry either of them that it was a _different_ _kind_ of magic than what he was working with in the caverns. And it certainly didn't occur to them that those two kinds of magic might not be completely compatible, either.

Something exploded.

One moment everything was fine and the next everything was falling apart around them. The magic Rehn was working with _snapped_ on contact with what Turii shared with him, lashing back at him sharply and throwing him across the cave. Dwina barely had time to utter a startled yelp before she was throwing her arms up defensively—and the new heartstone _shattered_, smashing into a million pieces and flying outward in all directions.

Across the cavern, Rehn had landed hard against the wall. Now he found himself sprawled on the ground, broken and bleeding and barely able to form coherent thought at all.

_:REHN!:_

Turii's Voice was panicked, but he couldn't even respond through the magical storm that was quickly whipping up violently around them, shoving Dwina backward and forcing the air from both of their lungs.

_Dwina…_

Huffing painfully, Rehn forced himself up onto his elbows, looking toward Dwina and squinting against the unnatural wind—the woman was trying desperately to gain control of the wild magic, but it was clear what she was doing wasn't working.

At this rate, what would happen to them? What would happen to _Haven_ and the unsuspecting people in the streets above them?

Rehn grit his teeth and reached one hand toward the broken heartstone, forcing down the pain and grasping the rough edges of the lashing magic. Determined, he grabbed at it and yanked it toward himself—it collided with him harshly, a rough, sharp feeling in his chest, down to the very core of his being.

In the back of his mind, Turii was screaming. Across the cave, Dwina was, too.

The magic storm tore at him, ripping him apart inside, heart, soul, body and everything he was. It picked him up and threw him against the cavern wall again, smashing his bones and pinning him there, a force of nature bent on destroying him in every way possible.

By the time it died down, smothered within himself, there was little left of him beside a torn, tattered shell.

"Rehn…" Dwina forced herself up off the ground, voice rasping slightly. "_Rehn!_"

Scrambling over, she dropped down beside where Rehn was sprawled. Pushing at his shoulder, she flipped him over—ignored the grinding, crunching sound of broken bones—and her hands flew up to search for a pulse. When she couldn't immediately find one, she leaned down to listen to his chest.

There was nothing. No breath, no heartbeat.

Rehn was dead.

Dwina sobbed, her breath rough in her chest, and shook her head—

Rehn's eyes blinked open.

But the familiar blue was absent. Blank, faded white stared up at her instead. A rattling gurgle sounded from the back of his throat—one hand lifted, shaky, reaching for her—and Dwina froze.

Something was wrong. _Something was very wrong._

Rehn was still reaching for her—and finally she jerked back, falling out of the way of his raking grasp, even as he was shoving up into a sitting position, bones grinding again, though he clearly didn't feel it—or at least didn't notice. Dwina scrambled back and out of his reach and hauled herself to her feet—tripped over some loose rocks from the shattered heartstone—and began backing her way toward the cave entrance.

"Rehn…"

No answer, beyond a gaping maw and reaching hands.

Rehn Walker really _was_ dead.

Dwina ran.


	2. 28 Days Later

**Disclaimer:** Valdemar and concepts belong to Mercedes Lackey; this story and original characters belong to their author.

**Notes: **Yes, zombies. _Yes_, I'm serious. :P And haha, each chapter is going to be given the title of a zombie movie, just for the hell of it. Try to recognize as many of them as you can, lol!

Now thanks to those who reviewed (I love reviews!) and on to the first real chapter!

**FALLOUT  
Chapter One: 28 Days Later  
By Senashenta**

The weather was nice. Sunny and warm with a pleasant, cooling breeze.

Thorn Tillman thought it really had no business being that way, considering the current circumstances.

_:It's a good day for the end of the world.: _Thorn's Companion, Sham, commented dryly.

Thorn simply rolled his eyes, then cast a glance out toward Companion's Field one last time before closing the window shutters and latching them securely. He badly missed the sunlight and fresh air, but with the way things were, it was better to be safe than sorry.

What hurt most was closing Sham and the other Companions on the outside, though.

_:Are you sure we can't get you inside, somehow?:_

_:Chosen,: _Sham chided softly. They had gone over this particular conversation many times in the past month. _:The attics are good for you lot of the human persuasion, but we Companions can't climb stairs and ladders very well. You know that.: _Then a little mental prod, and he added; _:and besides, there's a baker's dozen of us left out here. How would you propose to fit thirteen Companions in there with you?:_

_:I know, but...:_

He wanted Sham to be safe, and right now the Companions- those who still survived- were still living out in Companion's Field. Granted, it was spacious with lots of room to run if they had to, but it was still very much out in the open, with only a scattered few places to hide should the need arise.

At least food wasn't an issue for Sham and the others, Thorn reassured himself- or, not yet anyway. It was still springtime, so there was plenty of grass and clover growing, not to mention the somewhat dwindling stores of hay and alfalfa that were stacked behind the stables- not a lot, but enough left over from the winter to be useful.

It was when it came to feeding Thorn and his companions that things became complicated.

_:The pantries still have some stores left,: _Sham offered, but his tone was less than comforting, particularly when he finished off with; _:don't they?:_

_:Yeah... some.:_ Thorn replied vaguely.

Some, but not enough. By his count it had been twenty-eight days since the plague had first struck, at the outskirts of Haven. Heralds and the Guard were dispatched to take care of it- but they were out of their depth, and soon the capital was overrun and lost.

Most of the people who had lived at the Collegia were gone, either having left for destinations unknown, or having died. Even including himself, Thorn could count the number of survivors who were still living in the Collegium on one hand; three Heraldic-Trainees, a Healer-Trainee and a master level Mage, who was the only real adult among the group. The rest of them had been forced to grow up fast, though.

Beyond them, the thirteen Companions left in the Field were mostly comprised of those who were UnPartnered. Then there were Sham, Dysis and Felicity, who were Bonded to Thorn and the other two remaining Heraldic-Trainees: Kippen and Rachel. And of course, there were two others- the mare called Turii and the stallion named Kova.

Kova had lost his Herald at the beginning of the outbreak. They, along with all the other Heralds, had been sent out into Haven to gain control of the situation- that was _before_, when no one had really begun to understand the severity of the situation. Kova's Herald had been struck down quickly, vanished in the sea of bodies and humanity and sickness- and Kova had been able to do nothing to save him.

He grieved and hurt. Thorn could only imagine Kova's pain. But he had friends around him, and his sister, Kally, still survived as well. She supported him and helped him make it through.

For Turii, things were different. She wasn't as lucky as Kova.

_:She hurts _so much_, Chosen.: _Sham murmured, picking up on Thorn's thoughts. His voice was sad, subdued; _:her pain is palpable. So much worse than she should have to bear alone.:_

But that was just it- she wasn't alone. Not entirely.

Turii's Chosen was a Herald named Rehn- and he had been the start of the plague, the first person to die and then be reborn. The first one to come back to life and spread the sickness beyond himself. He walked the earth, dead but not, a shell of his former self, no longer human, something both more and at the same time less than a mere animal.

And he was still out there.

Somehow, some way, the Bond between Turii and Rehn remained, even through his infection, his death and resurrection. The mare could feel everything from him, but none of it came close to even the shadow of his former self. She was chained to him, and would be until his un-life was finally snuffed out for good. It was torture for her, every minute- every _second_ of every day.

Sham worried for her sanity and Thorn could understand why.

The rest of the remaining Companions were solo, having never Chosen, and surely thanked their lucky stars it was so.

But even with so few of them left, their supplies were fast running out. The Collegium was used to having deliveries of food and other necessities every single day, but now it had been almost a month since the last ones.

Any food that they hadn't gone through had turned rotten quickly in the warm weather, and they had been down to oats, rice and other dried foods nearly two weeks ago. Their cache of supplies was running low- and Thorn had no idea what they were going to do about it, only that they needed to do _something_- and fast.

"Felicity says to look on the bright side," Came a familiar voice from across the dark room, "at least we have lots of water."

Thorn snorted a half-laugh at that. It was true. Between the wells and the Terilee river they were set. "It's not water I'm worried over." He assumed that Rachel knew that already, probably from Sham talking to her Companion. It seemed they still couldn't shake the pesky Silence that the Companions seemed so insistent on holding onto. He wondered if they would ever give it up.

"Food, I know." Rachel frowned a little, then shifted her position into one that was a bit more comfortable, leaning back in an old wicker chair. Her arms were crossed over her chest and her eyes were closed, but it was obvious she was wide awake despite that. "We're getting low."

"So," came a third voice, just as familiar as Rachel's but much more lively (despite the situation), and Thorn's eyed flitted over to Kippen, "what are we going to do about it, then? Can't just wait around to starve, right?" Then a pause. Kip tipped his head slightly. "Gee, thanks Dy." He sighed, sticking his tongue out lightly. "Dy says we're welcome to any grass we might want, because they have lots out there."

Somehow it wasn't surprising that, despite everything, Kippen and Dysis were still able to joke around. They had both always been very light-hearted, and apparently the end of the world wouldn't change that.

If he was honest, though, Thorn had to admit that the two of them were probably the only reason he and the others hadn't gone completely out of their minds over the past twenty-something days of hiding and scratching out a existence under the umbrella of the apocalypse.

"There'd be supplies in Haven."

Thorn almost winced. He had been afraid someone would bring that up.

"Yeah, but you know what _else_ is in town, too."

Rachel frowned, but nodded nonetheless. "Do we have much of a choice? We'll have to face them sooner or later."

"I know, but…"

_Them_. Those who had been Infected. Those who were dead, but not. Those that fed on the few still-living who were managing to miraculously survive—people like them, few and far between as they were. Was it any wonder that none of them were in any hurry to confront them?

Rachel was right, though. It wasn't as if they had many other options. The longer they put off going into Haven, the closer they got to starving to death, and there was no point in waiting until they were half-starved and too weak to even attempt to defend themselves. They would die for sure that way.

"Where are Erik and Dwina?"

"Down in the store room."

Most likely, Thorn thought, they were going through the remaining supplies, organizing what was still edible and discarding anything that had begun to rot. Even stale food was still nutritious, but fresh fruit, vegetables and meats were almost all past the point of being useable. Whatever had begun to go bad was tossed out in a far corner of Companion's Field—during the night, when the undead beyond the Collegium Gates were quieter and had more trouble spotting them.

The news from Erik and Dwina when they returned was likely to be bad. Even the last time any of them had gone through the pantries and stores hadn't been good.

"Well," Kip said finally, and sat up a bit, stretching his arms above his head with a yawn. "I'm up for a trip into town! Maybe we can find something nice for you, Rach. Your birthing day's coming up, right?"

Rachel seemed surprised. "I never told you that—"

_:Dysis told him.: _Sham commented absently. _:She's been talking with Felicity. I suppose the two of them are trying to interject a little normalcy back into life for you lot.: _And then, a little quieter; _:you could use it.:_

Across the room, Rachel had gone quiet, so Thorn assumed that Felicity was telling her basically the same thing as Sham had just told him. Kip was simply blinking at them both, though it was likely the other boy was well aware that they were conversing with their Companions. He may have been chatting with Dysis at the time, himself.

"Heh, Kip, I mean, thanks for the thought and everything, but…" Rachel waved one hand dismissively. "Now's not the time to be thinking about that kind of thing. Maybe once the world gets back to normal, okay?"

"Aw, but Rachel!" Kip protested—but didn't go farther than that. Instead he made a soft sort of resigned noise and sat back in his chair again. "I guess. But we still have to go into town."

That was true. Thorn and Rachel both nodded reluctantly.

_:Chosen… it's dangerous.: _Sham told him worriedly. _:What if you get hurt? What if you don't come back?:_

That was a possibility, yes. Thorn didn't want to say as much, though.

_:I'll be okay, Sham.:_ He reassured his Companion—and then, as if to convince himself as well he continued, Mindvoice firm: _:We'll all be fine.:_


End file.
